Fund research into desexed language in women’s health

We have observed words like “girls,” “women,” “mothers” and “breastfeeding” being replaced or added to with terms like “people with a cervix”, “birthing people” and “chestfeeding” (desexed language).

The NHS is for everyone. It is founded on a common set of principles and values that bind together the communities and people it serves.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the NHS know the importance of using accurate and factual language in relation to biological sex as part of health communications, and our longstanding position is that language used should appropriately reflect sex as defined as a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010.

While speaking in plain English ensures clarity for patients, there will be occasions when NHS service providers want to specifically acknowledge patients with differing characteristics, including the transgender community. This may mean that trusts and other providers decide to use additive language (such as “women and transgender men”) to ensure health communications reach the largest audience. DHSC will continue to work with NHS England to ensure that language used continues to find the right balance.
Regarding research, DHSC, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), funds a range of research to boost health outcomes for all women and girls. We committed £52.2 million in 2024/25 for new research awards to support the health of women. This includes research into conditions that are unique to women, such as endometriosis, and health topics that are relevant to women, such as violence and abuse.

In April 2026, the NIHR also launched a call for research into how best to improve communication around women’s health across the life course, particularly in underserved or marginalised communities. More information is available at the following link: https://www.nihr.ac.uk/funding/womens-health-communication/2026379

The NIHR continues to welcome funding applications for research into human health, including women’s health. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

More generally, this Government is committed to prioritising women’s health as we reform the NHS.

The Renewed Women’s Health Strategy, published in April 2026, sets out how the Government will improve women’s health outcomes over the next decade, including by creating an approach to research and development that works for and empowers women. The Renewed Strategy recognises that women have too often been under-represented in research and innovation, leading to gaps in evidence, treatment and care. It commits to ensuring that women are not left behind in research through appropriate consideration of sex-based differences and by enabling women to take part more easily in research. It also commits to prioritising areas of unmet need for women’s health research and to supporting new research that can directly inform policy development and improve services for women. More broadly, the Renewed Strategy outlines how the Government will make women’s voices and choices central in healthcare, transform NHS performance in services that matter most to women, and support all women to live healthy, prosperous lives.

This marks a decisive shift from identifying problems to delivering change. By listening to women’s voices, strengthening the evidence base for women’s health, improving performance where it matters most, and tackling the drivers of poor health and inequality, we will ensure women and girls receive the care, respect and outcomes they deserve.

Department of Health and Social Care